Beast Masters
by Queen of the Beasts
Summary: A retelling of Beast Machines. Alone on Cybertron, with no idea about what's going on and unable to transform, the four remaining Maximals must find a way to survive before they go offline permanently with the help of a human, who proves to be more than meets the eye.
1. 00 Tales From the Past

****00. Tales From the Past****

**_A young Jack Darby learns the history of the origins of a spark and the extreme changes of their small town_**

Eight year old Jack heard thunder rolling in the distance as he tiptoed down the hall. His small blue eyes scanned the area, looking for anything that was out of place. He looked behind him. With a sneaky smile, he reached up and pulled at the lever that helped lowered the stairs that lead to the attic. Once the bottom of the steps touched the ground, he ascended up them.

Bingo! He found what he had come for. He snuck over to a box and tried to unlock it. He succeeded and lifted the lid carefully. He stared at the small sphere that emitted a faint glow, pulsing like a heart would. He reached out and carefully stroke it with nimble fingers. This thing, the thing called a spark, fascinated him. It caught his curiosity when he first saw it, it popped into his mind a lot. He tried to tell his friends, but they barely believed him.

Jack felt a hand grab his shoulder. He spun around and found a man with gray brown hair. Perched on his nose were glasses.

"You're not suppose to be up here," he scolded in a low whisper.

"I just wanted to know," Jack quickly replied.

His grandpa stared long and hard before he sighed. "Alright, you're old enough to hear this. Sit down." Jack obeyed. "Well, it began over forty million years ago when two strange vessels crashed into Earth. In the year of ninety eighty-four, they had been awaken. Our ancestors, Spike and Sparkplug and anyone who joined the cause, fought with them.

"Now, when your ancestor, Buster Witwicky was born, Daniel and another Autobot were killed. In the grieving of it, the new leader named Rodimus Prime had considered about what they called the 'Great Upgrade'. Of course, like the 'Great' War and the 'Great' Awakening, this upgrade was also meant to be special. It was meant to make them _smaller_. But to not let them know much of the human allies and to make sure this had never happened again."

Jack stared at him. "Why?"

"Because they couldn't risk more people being dragged into something that wasn't theirs. So, they hid all of the information they could hide before they left Earth...for good."

Jack looked at the spark. "And the spark? Where did it come from?"

"Well, that's the question," his grandfather said. "It doesn't know how it got into our possession. And yet, it speaks to us—"

"By _laughing _in our faces?"

Both of them looked up to find an elderly woman with her hand on her hips.

"For heaven's sakes, Ron, your ancestors were fools," she stated, "chasing tall tales for nothing."

"They were not tall tales, Judy," Ron argued. "They were based on facts written down from generation to generation. Though, it does make me wonder myself how the spark got into our possession."

Judy shook her head before turning to Jack. "Come, Jack. It's getting late. You should be in bed."

Jack nodded before he followed Judy, but he stopped and turned to Ron. "Grandpa, are we warriors?"

Ron smiled at his question. "Do you want to be one?"

Jack paused and thought about it before he nodded.

"Alright. Kneel down."

Judy stood at the bottom of the steps listening. She thought it was pretty foolish that Ron was filling his head with these stories, but she smiled because **Jack** was wise enough to know that family secrets like this couldn't be shared because no one would understand.

"Jackson William Darby, you are taken upon thyself to the duty of the Autobots, their ancestors, the Witwicky family, and other humans that have worked with us. Do you swear to never reveal this spark and our secret to those who wish to harm us or our planet?"

Jack looked up at him. "I so swear on my heart and this spark."

Jack heard a chuckle, so he could have sworn it came from the spark.


	2. 01 Tame the Beast Without

****This is Queen of the Beasts here. Over the summer, I thought of this story numerous times and I decided to write it down before I lost interest in it. And seriously, already I have four favorites and follows? That's amazing! Now before we get even further into this, let me set some facts down:****

****1. This is an almost-alternative universe picking up after Nemesis Pt. 2. Unfortunately for you guys, there are a butt load of elements from Beast Machines. If you don't like the cartoon, then don't even bother to read or comment on this. If you do, okay then. I mean, I don't mind the show, but I don't like how the characters were handled. That's basically one of the main reasons why I've put this up.****

****2. Second, Savage/Noble will appear, but he is given a major makeover, on account of how I didn't like anything much of him in the original cartoon. Speaking of matters, some of them might get makeovers as well, so don't expect to see Rattrap wheeling around or a else one of the characters will be nicknaming him "Wheelie".****

****3. No Oracle. Nuff said. I thought it was one of the main reasons why the show was a total disaster. So it'll be replaced by a certain person. And it's not Jack. Take another wild guess.****

****4. Rhinox will not turn evil. Whether or not he'll die, that I'm still debating on.****

****5. Finally, we're breaking past the twenty-six episode limit. So, I will like to say that we could go even further from the traditional fifty-two episode limit. Kidding, I won't; it's too much work for me here.****

****Now, on with the story.****

**01 Tame the Beast Without**

_Escaping from strange new foes and unable to transform, four Maximals remade encounter a mysterious being who may be the key to their survival. _

A group of black and purple robots with red visors and face masks were strolling down a street of what looked like a deserted city. They seemed cautious, for they had their blasters out and they were constantly turning their heads this way and that. It was as if they were looking for something. Or someone.

"Do you see anything yet?" one labeled as 5T-113V3 questioned.

"Not one speck of life," another labeled as J0-3Y answered.

"Keep your sensors onlined," ST3-V3N suggested. "There could be someone around here."

Just then a shadowy figure ran past them.

"What was that?" a third labled as K3-NNY said.

A gorilla ran past them. But it didn't look like any ordinary gorilla. True, he was gray with a spatch of silver on his back and he had honey brown eyes, but there was a strip of metal under his chest and he had gauntlet-like armor on his arms.

"Open fire!" shouted. And they did, but the gorilla managed to dodge them all, so they transformed into their primary car like mode and followed it. "Don't let it out of your sights."

As the gorilla ran into the light, he saw that he had reached a dead-end and was backed up against a wall with the troopers pointing their blasters at him. Then the gorilla spoke to them:

"I don't know who you are, but if it's a fight you're looking for...Optimus Primal, maximize!"

Nothing happened. He looked over himself in confusion.

"What's going on? Why can't I transform?" Optimus exclaimed.

The drones looked at each other in confusion before the leader aimed his blasters at Optimus. The Maximal commander gasped and ducked out of way. He grabbed the bar above him and swung right over on top of the walls. The drones aimed their blasters and fired. Optimus dodged them and grabbed the bars up ahead. He swung them like they were vines. The drones followed him and kept firing at him. Finally, he reached a platform. He jumped up and landed on it. It was a close call.

Suddenly, a blur went past him. He looked up to find a figure crouching down and looking at him at the top of the rails of the train. It pointed at the coming TransAm and nodded before it fled.

"Hey, wait!" Optimus called out. He heard the sound of transforming. He turned around and saw the drones standing underneath him. The ape quickly jumped and somehow ended up inside.

"Yo!"

Startled, Optimus jumped and turned around to the voice. It belonged to a puke green rat with silver and red paws, a long tail, and a hatch on its back.

"Get off, buddy!" the rat snapped. "Dis is my hidin' spot."

"Rattrap!" Optimus exclaimed, happy to see his friend.

"Optimus?" Rattrap asked.

A shot hit the side of the train and it shook.

"Do ya mind tellin' me what's goin' on here?" Rattrap asked. "One thing we were flyin' home for Cybertron. Next thing I know these bozos are using us for target practice"

"You mean you don't remember either?" Optimus asked. "It must be some kind of a virus or a glitch."

"Oh, ya wanna glitch?" Rattrap spat. "Check this out." He sounded like he was straining himself as he tried to transform.

"I know," Optimus sighed. "I can't transform either. But we'll figure it out. Right now we just have to keep moving."

Rattrap pressed himself against the wall. "Whoa, ho! No way dis rat's desertin' dis hole!"

"Maximals! Or, whatever you are," the same trooper called out. "You both are under arrest. You will either cooperate and come out peacefully or you will be forced to."

Optimus grabbed Rattrap and jumped out. They landed on the ground and started to run with the troopers chasing after them, firing their weapons at them.

"Rattrap maximize," Ratrrap repeated over and over again. "Rattrap maximize!"

Optimus looked up and nearly gasped. The _same_ figure was up ahead on top of the building. It pointed to the left before it disappeared.

"This way," Optimus told Rattrap.

And it was a dead end! Optimus stopped and watched the figure standing over them before it disappeared again.

"Rattrap, pretty please maximize?" Rattrap whimpered.

No one noticed the dark figure ahead of them until it jumped and fell on one of the troopers. It was a cheetah, with orchid purple and brown spots with golden eyes. Small patches of it were a sea green.

"Cheetor!" Optimus cried out as Rattrap whooped happily.

"Good timin', Spots!" Rattrap complimented.

"Move it or lose it, guys," Cheetor told them. "I can't play blind cop forever."

One of the troopers fired. Cheetor jumped off and the blast hit the drone, straight in the abdomen.

"Hey! You just slagged your own guy! That's deep-freeze cold!" Cheetor commented.

"Oops," the trooper said. 5T-113V3 whacked him one.

"Pull yourself together and fire at them," he snarled. "Commander Starscream wants them all alive."

One of the troopers glared at Cheetor and aimed his blasters at the feline. His eyes widen before he ran into the darkness of the night as it opened fire.

Rattrap went up to one of them. "Hey, you!" he spat. "Yeah, that's right. I'm talkin' ta ya!"

The trooper pointed his blaster at the Maximal, forcing him to duck in between his legs. Rattrap ran in between more of the look alikes. Just then, Optimus pushed the first one over, forcing them to play dominoes. The trio ran down the road before they went hiding in the shadows of a nearby wall.

"Am I missing something here?" Cheetor queried. "This is Cybertron, right? Our home planet? I mean, why would our _own_ kind shoot at us?"

"Have ya looked in a mirror lately?" Rattrap snapped. "Our own kind don't recognize us in these lousy fur coats."

"No problem," said Cheetor. "We'll just get to a CR Chamber and de-bug this glitch."

"Hello-oh!" Rattrap shouted. "We're in de middle of nowhere!"

"This is worse than I thought," Optimus pinpointed. "If we don't figure out a way to transform from these new forms, we will be shut down...completely."

"So, you're saying if those troopers don't get us, the glitch will?" Cheetor asked.

"Oh, I just love havin' options," Rattrap mumbled.

Suddenly a building next to them exploded and fell into the ground, breaking through the surface and creating a endless pit as it crashed down. The drones were coming, but yet the same figure as before jumped from a building and down the hole.

"Everyone underground," Optimus ordered. "Now!"

"What makes ya think it's safe down there?" Rattrap demanded. Something shot at them. They turned to find the same troopers coming at them. "I withdraw the question."

"Jump!" Optimus shouted as they jumped and down into the darkness, screaming.

They must have dropped at least ten feet because whatever it was that saved them, it caught them before they could go down another few feet. They bounced off of it before settling down.

Something hissed. They looked up and nearly died. As it emerged into the light, Optimus saw it was a reddish pink spider with eight long legs and green markings all over it. It crawled down the walls as he stared at its sickly green eyes. He heard it gasp.

"Oh, it's you," it exclaimed. "Too bad. I was hoping to take some drones with me."

"Blackarachnia?" Cheetor said. "Boy, am I glad to see you."

"Yeah, isn't this cozy," Blackarachnia stated sarcastically. "Now we can all deactivate together."

"Nobody's deactivating on my watch," Optimus said trying to keep his friends level.

"Impressive reprisal, Primate," Blackarachnia mused sarcastically, "but unless I miss my guess, you three can't transform out of beast mode anymore than I can. I give us three cycles before we all get caught and go offline...for good."

"Oh, ya sure know how ta paint a pretty picture," Rattrap mumbled.

Optimus sighed.

"Come on."

Everyone looked up to find the stranger at the end of the hallway.

"This way," it beckoned before it disappeared into the shadowy darkness.

"Follow him," Optimus decided.

Rattrap and Cheetor gave each other funny looks before obeying.

After a few minutes of walking, the Maximals had reached the end of the tunnel, peering down at a bottomless pit.

"Are ya sure you know what yer doin', because I don't see a pattern here," Rattrap whined.

"Don't you see? That same being has been guiding us to each other. It's no coincidence," Optimus explained.

After a couple minutes of climbing down, Blackarachnia groaned, "How much farther do we have to go? My webbing is drying up."

"My servos are stiffening," Cheetor said, straining to keep himself awake.

"Mine too," Rattrap whimpered.

"Just hold on a little longer," Optimus said, but then Blackarachnia suddenly ran out and fell down, taking the other three with her.

* * *

><p>Darkness.<p>

It was the only thing there. It was the only thing that welcomed them. It was the only thing that beheld them. Only darkness would comfort them.

No. Optimus would _never_ allow that now. His dark eyes fluttered open before he caught a glimpse of amber, green, and dark green. Relieved the others were awake and alive, he got up onto his feet. He looked around some more and found some rocks and debris in every corner. The place looked like there was a fight here. Only a small ray of light cast down on them.

"Where are we?" Cheetor asked.

"Nowhere," Blackarachnia growled. "Thanks to our fearless leader."

"I know where we're going," Optimus snapped before he added calmly, "We are wherever we are destined to go to."

"Would you stop already?" Rattrap spoke. "Boss Monkey, give it up. There's nothing here."

Optimus stayed silent in his spot before he felt the tension building up inside of him.

"I will not...give up!" he shouted as he rushed forward.

"Optimus!" he heard Cheetor screamed before he heard footsteps echoing behind him.

Optimus didn't stop. He kept running. He kept running to his spark's desire. Or at least until he saw a light up ahead. He slowed down and walked to the light. When he came to the room, he was fascinated.

"I hate it when he does that," he heard Rattrap snarl. "He's gotta learn ta stop acting like th' world depends on him. Someone needs to teach him dat."

"Optimus is the least of our worries, Rattrap," Blackarachnia said. "Right now, we need to get organized and figure out what's going on here."

"Guys, check this out," Cheetor suddenly spoke.

The others looked ahead and gasped. There was a room and in it were bushes and trees adorned with either flowers or fruit.

"A forest in a cave?" Blackarachnia said. "Now I've seen everything."

"But how can plants exist on dis planet when der clearly isn't any soil?" Rattrap wondered. "And with no water?"

"Wow," Cheetor mused. "I've never seen these flowers before."

Optimus picked a fruit from one of the trees and studied it. "These trees look untouched."

Rattrap and Cheetor ventured deeper into the greenery.

"Whoa," Rattrap breathed. "Ain't nothin' here."

"It looks like nobody's been here for ages," Cheetor said.

"At least, not that we know of," Optimus muttered to himself.

Somebody screamed and Blackarachnia jumped away from one of the the trees. "What the heck is that thing?" she screeched.

"It's called a vine, ya ninny," Rattrap snapped.

"I know that," Blackarachnia shot back. "But there is no way on this stinkin' planet that a vine can grow _that_ fast."

Cheetor glared at the vine. "Since when do plants grow fast?"

Optimus examined it and noticed the strange qualities on it. He looked back at the others. "We're obviously dealing with alien plants, not anything like of prehistoric Earth's."

"Of course," a voice spoke. "These were substitutes for living things like me."

Everyone turned around to find the stranger. His head was cocked to the side, his bright orange visor ever lit so brightly. His entire armor was black with silver trim. His helm looked like a motorcycler's helmet, while the shoulder pads were thin and the chest plate layered like carapace. To Optimus' amusement, it was wearing a black leather trench coat with a hood.

"My name is Jay," the person said. "It's all right. I'm here as a friend and ally. I can help you with your problem." He looked over at the Maximals. "I'm going to teach you how to transform from your new forms. First, we have to get to somewhere else. I don't think I want to have anything here destroyed."

* * *

><p>Almost a quarter of an hour later, Jay had lead them to the surface and to a small ship yard. When asked about his history and the absense of the planet, Jay talked very little, saying how a virus had managed to paralyze the ones that were present on the planet. Now he stood before them in one of the hangers, Optimus close by in case.<p>

"Just free your mind," Jay instructed. "Let go of any kind of thought inside and focus on transforming."

Optimus, Cheetor, and Blackarachnia seemed to be in a peaceful state. Rattrap, on the other hand, was _forcing_ his transformation.

"Rattrap, what did I tell you?" Jay scolded.

"Oh, what's with all the hocus pocus?" Rattrap sighed. "Just give us the command codes so we can transform already."

"It's not going to be that easy," Jay stated. "Whatever freak accident you guys got into, it melded you all into both technology and living tissue. Thus, command codes are pretty much in the past now, so you are all dealing with it spiritualy."

"So, what are we?" Cheetor asked. "Robots or animals?"

Jay looked at Optimus for help.

"Both, _and_ neither," Optimus answered.

"Well, that sure clears things up," Blackarachnia said sarcastically.

"The key to transforming is to find the nature of yourself inside," Jay continued. "It's like finding a needle in the haystack, but once the last straw is removed is only when you are transformed."

As soon as he finsihed, a blue light glowed from Optimus' chest and washed over his body. His giant gorilla form was replaced with that of a humanoid being. His hands were orange and his lower arms had huge beige armor pieces covering them. His shoulders were covered with rocky gray shoulder pads and newly added jet nozzles were on his back. He took a pose, like he was ready to fight.

"Wow," Jay whistled. "You're a fast learner."

"Whaddya expect?" Rattrap said. "He switches bodies, ya know."

But Jay didn't know. At least, until now. "Okay, let's try you," he continued, turning to Cheetor.

Cheetor closed his eyes and concentrated. Suddenly a purple light engulfed his body. Two arms shot from his sides and the front part of him pulled in. The next thing they knew, he was standing up straight. "Woo-hoo! Check me out," he said.

Rattrap had to do a double take. Cheetor was tall with broad shoulders, a wide back, a harden chest, and slender abdomen. His legs were double jointed with small pedes. Perfect right triangles were on his arms and ankles with a sword on each shoulder. There were patches of green on the sides of his waist, jaw, and upper legs. Cheetor put his clawed hands on his hips, as if he were proud of his new form.

"Well, here goes nothing," Blackarachnia told herself before a light green emitted from her. Four of her legs were replaced by arms and strong legs. A head and torso was were the spider's body was. She stood up and made a movement like that she was about to attack someone.

"Whoa," Jay breathed.

"Check you out," Cheetor said.

Blackarachnia looked herself over. She was still a bit miffed about being pink, but at least she had fingers. She was of tall height with an hourglass figure, her raven black hair tinted with blue. She looked elogant with green eyes. But, her forehead opened up to reveal two hatches that hid at least a set of eyes.

While this was going on, Rattrap fidgeted, determined to transform himself.

"I am transformed," he groaned. "I am so transformed that I don't even believe it!" Eventually, he gave up.

"Need any help?" Jay chuckled as he walked up to him.

"No, no, I got it," Rattrap told him as he tried to force himself. But after at least three seconds, he shouted, "Okay, I need help! Help me, help me!"

"Okay, here," Jay started in a soothing voice. "Relax now. Close your eyes. Alright, so your in a meadow, millions of stars in the sky, the warm breeze, the moonlight flowing through the trees, the lovely waterfalls, the trickling fountains, and the calming sounds of the babbling brook..."

"I can feel it," Rattrap said. "I can actually feel it."

Cheetor's senses came on, forcing him to look around. "Anyone else getting that buzzing sound?"

As the noise got louder, the Maximals looked towards the opening and saw what seemed to be a small light heading towards them was an entire squad of the same troopers racing towards them.

"And now I lost it," Rattrap grumbled.

"Looks like they caught the scent," Jay confirmed.

"What do you say we give our new bodies a test drive?" Cheetor proclaimed ready for battle. The Maximals then jumped forward as Rattrap bared his teeth, Optimus growled with his fists ready, Blackarachnia positioned herself, Cheetor readied his swords, and Jay heated up his rifle. At the same time the drones transformed and readied their hand blasters.

A huge figure landed between them and the newcomers. They stared at the dark colored giant that glared at them as it snarled and straightened up, though it was hunched. Unlike most Cybertronians these days, who looked human, this one was beast-like. Especially its face. It bared its sharp teeth at him.

"Does he come with a warranty?" Rattrap whimpered.

"Looks ugly if you ask me," Blackarachnia scoffed.

"Do not judge Hardshell!" the mech shouted. "Hardshell will have puny scums arrested and tried for."

"They brought a crowd," Jay mused. "That's something I've never seen before."

And as if someone hit a switch, the place was filled with the sounds of battle.

A trooprt marked J-11AM35 snarled as he tried to sink his claws into Rattrap's hide, who was able to dodged and use his smaller size and mass well against the trooper, running around him and striking him in several vulnerable places, while the drone growled and hissed in pain as he managed to leave deep scratches on Rattrap, making him wonder how come he couldn't get out of beast mode.

The second drone, K3-NNY, charged at Cheetor as he fired over and over again with his blaster while avoiding Cheetor's swords. But the feline was able to get in a good hit as he jumped and managed to stab the attacker in the visor, causing him to reel back and cry out in pain. Giving Cheetor the opportunity, he rammed them both into its chest and pulled back before one marked 6A-R33 charged at him.

Jay had disposed his rife back to his armor and pulled out an Cybertronian version of a sword as one he faced the one marked as 5T-113V3. He let out a battle cry as he charged at the trooper. Gripping the sword, Jay swung it and scratched the trooper, but it wasn't good enough. The Decepticon smashed and banged his blaster against his rival before delivering not much of a punch to the stomach. But Jay countered by smashing the hilt of the sword into 5T-113V3'S chin, causing him to fly backwards and land a few feet away.

Blackarachnia dodged J0-3Y as he attacked. He was able to draw energon from her as she panted, trying to think of how to push him into a corner. In the end, Blackarachnia crouched down and electrical charges pulsed through. She jumped and did a back flip in the air. She landed on the trooper and electrocuted J0-3Y. The trooper cried out before it dropped down. Dead? Unsure of it yet.

Optimus and Hardshell clashed with one another, both trying to get the upper servo in this battle. Hardshell brought down his claws, only for Optimus to block it and slam a fist into his face that made him take a few steps back as Optimus charged. But Hardshell stepped to the side, causing Optimus to stagger slightly as he tried to turn around. But Hardshell was quicker as he slammed his arm into Optimus' neck, causing him to fall to one knee. Hardshell raised his claws to finish off Optimus, but he managed to combine his energy and threw a beam of it at Hardshell, who went flying.

Jay heard a cry and found Cheetor skidding across the floor. A trooper had his blaster pointed at him. Jay finished off the trooper he was fighting and ran towards them. As the trooper fired, Jay was between them. The blast got him in the back, sending him flying to the other side of the room.

"Jay!"

Everyone looked up and found the stranger unconscious. He laid there limp, motionless, and didn't show much signs of life. The only way they knew was the constant groaning he gave out.

Rattrap saw this and was filled with anger. He slowly glared at his enemy with venom in his eyes. Then a wondrous thing happened. A bright red light glowed from his chest. Before he could transform, he rushed forward and jumped and transformed all at once. He jabbed something in the mech's chest, permanantly putting it offline before crashing into a ship.

Rattrap's new form was quite unique. His face looked quite humanlike, but it was gray, dispite the red, black, and green armor he had. A visor rested at the top of his head, resembling almost like a cap. Attached to his lower legs were two wheels with the Maximal symbol to it. There was a small sword on his back that resembled a rat's tail.

"Grenade!" ST-113V3 shouted before they took off. Hardshell roared and ran after them.

"Out, now!" Optimus shouted.

Jay sluggishly struggled to his feet, then to be supported by Cheetor. The feline grabbed Blackarachnia as Optimus got Rattrap and they all got out there. By the time they had reached the roof the underground area exploded. They yelled and jumped in time before they got caught. By the time they were on the ground, Jay collapsed, groaning.

"I got him," Cheetor exclaimed as he ran up to Jay. He gently picked him up. As Jay's head dipped backwards, his helmet had slipped off and crashed onto the ground. The Maximals were shocked and surprised to discover that their mysterious friend was actually a human!

His eyes were closed, but every other feature was present: his onyx black hair, his sharp angular face, his light skin. He looked like a young adult, though he had sounded like he was Cheetor's age. The way his eyes looked like they were near squinting, they could see that he was struggling to stay alert.

"A human!" Cheetor gasped. "Where did he come from?"

"It's impossible," Blackarachnia pointed out. "There's never been a human on this planet since the end of the Great War."

"Well, now that we got 'im out of der alive, what're we gonna do 'bout 'im?" Rattrap questioned.

"We can't just let him go," Optimus stated. "Hardshell and his gang would certainly destroy him."

Jay's eyes fluttered open to reveal cobalt blue. He groaned and brought a hand to his forehead. "Ugh, what happened?" He looked around and realized it. "Oh, now I remember."

"Are ya screwy?" Rattrap finally snapped. "Ya could've gotten killed."

Jay laughed. "So, you _do_ care."

Rattrap's mouth opened, but no words came out.

"Well, I gotta go," Jay groaned as he got up.

Optimus looked away before he said, "We do owe you tremendous gratitude."

"Thanks, but it can wait until the end," Jay stated before picking up his helmet and cradling it under his arm.

"Care to join us?"

Optimus' sudden offer forced Jay to halt and gawk at him. "What?" he yelped. "I'm just a human. What can I do to help you?"

Optimus looked away before looking back at him and answering, "We really could use an ally to help us know what else happened to Cybertron. But, the decision to do so is yours to make."

Jay blinked. "This is a choice?"

"That is the Maximal way."

Jay looked around. He saw that the other Maximals also had supporting smiles on their faces, like they wanted him to say so. Finally with a grin on his face, he decided, "Alright, I'll do it. But just to let you know, my real name is Jack Darby."

* * *

><p>"Hardshell! Was I not clear on the whole 'optics on him at all times' phrase?" The dark figure did not bother to hide his anger. Despite being in the shadows, everyone could tell he wasn't exactly a powerful being, but he was quick and cunning. He was black with a rounded helm and a red crest that was attached to his forehead. The red optics flared with anger at Hardshell who growled.<p>

"Starscream, I must make a precaution. Hardshell is not one to mess with," a small sphere shaped drone, who was hovering over the floor said as he approached them.

"Shut up!" the mech shouted as he aimed one of his arms and fired a missile. It set off an explosion, but he was disappointed when the fire cleared and found the drone unharmed.

"I clearly don't understand you," Starscream said. "I mean, Knock Out is narcissistic and Soundwave is so annoying because he talks monotonously. So you tell me, how are they more useful than you are?"

"Um, they weren't programmed?" the drone asked.

Starscream glared at him.

"Commander Starscream," the drone said in a fake painful voice, "I only serve as a medical assistance to Knock Out, not as a high class warrior."

Hardshell growled before he came closer. "Hardshell no take orders from you," he growled. "Hardshell take orders from true leader!"

Starscream mocked him before a slender black and blue mech with long, diamond shaped wings turned to them. His face was covered with a mask.

"I see that it is a notorious device, but are you certain that whatever it is you are dealing with is unsubtle?" Starscream questioned.

"Oh, look on the bright side, Starscream," says a ruby red mech. "At least we know where our enemy lies."

"I am just saying," Starscream pointed out, "that it would be a total waste of energon doing so."

"Soundwave: Confirmation: Positive and sure."

Starscream sighed. "Then activate it."

Soundwave obeyed. A gold, white, and orange brown portal formed in front of them. Without warning, flames rushed through and burst into their faces. As they finished coughing, they gazed upwards. Their optics widen with fascination and horror. They saw a beast emerging from the portal: a perfectly built red dragon with some silver. His wings were tattered and torn and his tail was spiked. His golden eyes glared at the small team.

"Decepticons!" the dragon, otherwise known as Megatron, shouted. "I have returned."

****So, what do you think? Good? Bad? Can't tell? Just leave a nice review and let me know.****

****By the way, there is a voting poll on my profile, asking which character you – Yes, you, the fellow reader! – want to appear in the 'Son of a Legend' sequel. The poll will close when I get the second chapter up. Or at least until I feel like I have enough votes. Have fun!****

****Cast (in order of appearance):****

****Vehicons – anyone you want****

****Garry Chalk – Optimus Primal****

****Scott McNeil – Rattrap****

****Ian James Corlett – Cheetor****

****Venus Terzo – Blackarachnia****

****Chris Pine – Jack Darby****

****Hardshell – David Kaye****

****Starscream – Michael Dobson (with Goth's voice)****

****Diagnostic Drone – Christopher Gaze****

****Soundwave – Frank Welker****

****Knock Out – Darren Norris****

****Megatron – David Kaye****


	3. 02 Master of the House

**02 Master of the House**

_After their first fight, the Maximals come face to face with the source of their troubles._

It had been a while after the four Maximals had found each other. They did manage to find themselves comfortable living in the underground base with barely much equipment to survive. It never did matter then. The biggest issue so far was the disappearance of not only the entire race of Cybertronians, but also of the presence of Silverbolt and Rhinox.

"Morning, guys," Jack yawned to Blackarachnia and Optimus as he walked into the central room, wearing an old black t-shirt and textile pajama pants.

"Hey! You actually _remember_ us this morning," Blackarachnia commented.

Jack spread his arms out with a small grin. "Third day's a charm," he said before he sat down.

"This place reminds me a lot of the _Axalon_," Optimus stated as he looked around.

"What's that?" Jack asked.

"A ship we once had before our oldest nemesis, Megatron, had his troops destroy it," Optimus answered. He turned to him. "I hope we're not making it too hard on you."

"No, it's been great," Jack told him. "And look, I just want you to know that with you guys staying here and everything, it actually feels great to not being the only living being here that's not being hunted down."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Optimus noted, almost not noticing Cheetor walking in.

"Hey, you're not screaming about monsters this morning!" he exclaimed.

"Alright, alright, I get it," Jack said. Then he said as Rattrap came in, "Yeah, I'm not screaming about aliens. Okay, was it really that bad?"

Optimus raised a brow.

"Eh, what happened?" Rattrap asked groggily as he took a seat.

"Nothing, nothing. When would you like to begin the training?" Jack asked.

"Training?" Rattrap questioned, suddenly wide awake.

"By the looks of how I met you guys, you acted like as if you were never always like this," Jack pointed out. "So, we gotta start sometime."

"Why do I have a feeling that he's right?" Blackarachnia wondered as she sat down.

"Because I am," Jack said, grinning at them.

"Um, Optimus," Cheetor glanced at Optimus, but was stopped when a hand was held up.

"Please, don't," the Primal said. "I don't know the circumstances nor the limits of out new forms. I don't want this coversation to carry on further. Am I understood?"

Jack frowned. It was just training. What was wrong with that?

* * *

><p>Later, Rattrap, Cheetor, and Blackarachnia in beast mode were walking down another hall.<p>

"Training," Cheetor scoffed. "I am so sure I need it."

"Do ya have any idea what it's like ta beat these guys senseless when it comes ta beast modes?" Rattrap questioned him.

"Rattrap," said Blackarachnia.

"I know, I know," Rattrap reminded her. "Shut up."

Silence hung between them before Cheetor said, "I really don't understand why we should fight to the death. There's five of of us against, like, a billion of them. And we don't know why those goons were attacking us in the beginning."

"Well," Rattrap said, a sign of an idea spilling on that word, "why don't we go up der and find out ourselves."

"And disobey Optimus' orders?" Cheetor pointed out.

"What?" says Blackarachnia. "He told us to be cautious. He didn't say _where_."

Cheetor hesitated before looking up at the shaft that opened to the upperworld. He either could follow them and die on this planet, or stay down here and let them die. Alone.

"How do we get up there?" Cheetor asked.

Almost half an hour of climbing, Rattrap carefully lifted the lid of the shaft up. He glanced around to check and see if the coast was clear before they climbed out of the shaft. They walked out of the alley before Rattrap came to a halt.

"What?" Blackarachnia gasped.

"Cybertropolis," Rattrap breathed. "Home to almost ten million transformers alike."

Cheetor gazed at the city. "Where is everybody?"

"It's like they just up and left," Blackarachnia said.

"Eh, don't know," Rattrap said. "Probably had somethin' ta do with th' big cheesehead we fought the other day."

Cheetor stiffened before he loosened up and kept walking. He stopped again suddenly and turned around. "What was that?"

"Eh, probably just some..." Blackarachnia stopped when she noticed the same noise. She slowly turned around and saw a few specks coming at them.

"Um, guys?" said Rattrap.

The specks started to open fire at them.

"Ambush!" Cheetor shrieked.

An explosion hit their location and they went falling to theirs deaths, screaming. Luckily, they hit the side of a building and slid down the side. They managed to land safely on the ground and continued to escape from the flying troopers. Blackarachnia jumped onto a building.

"What are ya doin'?" Rattrap called out.

"Keep them busy," Blackarachnia ordered, turning to him. "I have an idea." She kept running into the shadows.

"Could ya fill us in a little more?" Cheetor shrieked before they took off.

The jets fired upon the Maximals as they scurried away from them. Cheetor didn't know how far they were going or how close they were to Blackarachnia's destination, but he sure wanted to get away from these dorks.

Suddenly, he heard a strange sound. He craned his head to look behind him and found the drones being electrocuted by some wires before falling to the ground.

Rattrap laughed as Blackarachnia jumped in front of him. "Eh, good thinkin', Webs."

Cheetor looked behind him and yelled, "They got friends!"

Blackarachnia turned to find a few jet drones coming at them. "Drat."

"Any other ideas?" Rattrap yelped.

"Just one – run!" Cheetor shouted.

* * *

><p>Jack sighed as he tapped on the screen of his datapad. No matter how many times he tried to get access into the enemy's headquarters, he couldn't get pass the walls that blocked them. So far, he got nowhere.<p>

A sudden vibration shook the base. Dust fell from the ceiling. Jack looked up in confusion.

"What in the world?" he wondered. He tilted his head before he realized the truth. "Oh, no."

* * *

><p>Cheetor had never been so tired in his entire life. He almost tripped over his feet as he and his companions ran as fast as they could. "We gotta get them away from the entrance," he said.<p>

"How about leadin' 'em away from us?" Rattrap shrieked as they ducked into a ship yard.

"You got any ideas how to?" Blackarachnia shouted.

"No!"

"Then shut up and keep running!"

They turned a corner and kept going.

"One man, alone, betrayed by the country–"

"Yeah yeah. We've all heard it a million times now," Cheetor groaned. He noticed a pipe. "In there."

They both crawled into the pipe and sat there. Cheetor sighed as he pressed himself against the wall. His paw brushed against something. He looked down and found a strange device. He picked it up. "What's this?"

Rattrap looked up and saw the object. He had a smirk that made Cheetor regret asking. Rattrap snatched the weapon from him and turned to the opening.

"Are you insane?" Blackarachnia hissed. "What if you miss?"

"Au contraire, Mademoiselle, I _never_ miss." Rattrap pulled the pin with his buck teeth and threw it out into the opening.

The clinking sound did not go amiss by the drones. The turned around to find the device beeping slowly before the object exploded.

"Wow," Cheetor mused.

But as the smoke cleared, only one drone stood standing.

"Uh-oh," Cheetor said.

"We're toast," Rattrap whined.

The silver and black drone glared into their direction before it came over, its blaster aimed at them and firing up.

"Out of all the stupid things you did, you had to show him the grenade," Blackarachnia groaned.

"I am not scared," Rattrap repeated to himself. "I am not scared. I am not scared." He saw the drone coming closer. "Rattrap, pretty please maximize," he asked himself quietly and softly. He covered his optics and shrieked in panic.

"Easy, fella."

All three Maximals looked up to find Jack standing in front of him instead of the drone.

"You're not gonna do much with that kind of attitude," Jack laughed as he helped them out of there.

"Oh, I'm gonna waste one of them one of these days," Rattrap snapped. "And when I do, watch out."

"I'll try to remember that," Jack giggled.

"Rattrap, Cheetor, and Blackarachnia!"

Both of them jumped at Optimus' sudden voice.

"Before you ask," Cheetor started, "it wasn't exactly my idea."

"It wasn't exactly _our_ idea to save your butts," Jack pointed out, "and yet we did."

Rattrap slowly got down on his stubby knees before he was completely kneeling down.

"What are you doing?" Blackarachnia asked.

"I am here on my knees," Rattrap said, "about to kiss the ground as a sign of how sorry I am for being stupid. Much like they did in Japan."

"Um, they bow as a sign of respect," Jack reminded him.

"What?" said Rattrap.

"Respect, huh?" Optimus said, looking thoughtful.

"Oh, maybe bringing that up wasn't such a good idea," Jack stated.

"Hey, I know we shouldn't have come up here," Cheetor mentioned, "but I just want to know why there are look alike drones up here and not normal looking...whatever they are."

"Evacuation?" Rattrap guessed.

Blackarachnia shook her head. "There's got to be more to the story than what we've uncovered so far."

"Then ya can explain th' disappearance of th' whole entire planet's population," Rattrap challenged.

"The virus," Optimus exhaled.

"It would explain the whole reason why it messed up our transforming protocols," Blackarachnia realized.

"Until some accident we got into reformatted us," Cheetor mentioned.

"So, what about the drones?" Jack asked.

Optimus had begun to wonder that to. Then he looked over and saw his destination point.

* * *

><p>The Council Citadel was fancy in Jack's opinion. He craned his neck to see how tall the building was. He felt like he was shrinking due to the fact the structure made him feel like a dwarf. Then again, Cybertronians were bigger back then.<p>

"Wow," he breathed as Rattrap scurried on ahead.

"Rattrap, wait!" Optimus called out. "The Council Citadel may be heavily guarded."

As if on cue, the doors opened and a bunch of troopers came out firing at them.

"Ya think?" Rattrap whimpered.

"Optimus, what do we do?" Jack asked.

"Hold them off while you can," Optimus ordered. "I'm going in."

He rushed inside as Jack fired his rifle. Some of the the troopers were also focused on him, but Jack shot them down as well, getting his leader safely inside.

Optimus continued down the hall until he reached a door. He entered a dark room. He couldn't see anything that much, but a brilliant light lit up, revealing tiles floating in mid air. They came together instantly to form a path. Optimus seemed impressed. He contined down the pathway before two small lights appeared, catching his attention. They flew ahead and lit the ceiling.

"What is this place?" Optimus asked.

A bright light lit the room, causing him to squeeze his optics tight as he slowly opened them to watch something descend from the ceiling.

"Why, you may call it my throne room, Optimus Primal."

He gazed up before snarling, "Megatron." At the same time, he was disgusted watching his nemesis coming down with wires attached to his helm. "What have you done with the Council of Elders?"

"At last, they are no longer in control," Megatron said. "Cybertron is now my domain. You may bow down to your new lord, _and _master_.__"_

Optimus glared venomously at the Predacon leader as he descended from the ceiling.

"Surprise to see your old nemesis, Optimus Primal?" Megatron spoke, his voice grim and ominous. "I believe we have some catching up to do. A few memory gaps to fill in."

Optimus snarled in response.

"Let's start with the Beast Wars," Megatron continued. "They're over...you _lost_. Oh, and there a few loose ends running about."

Optimus looked at one of the screens to find his companions.

"I don't know what it is that did the job," Megatron spoke, "but it lead them straight to me."

"We got to lead them away from the Council Citadel," Cheetor said onscreen.

"How about leadin' 'em away from us?" Rattrap complained.

"That very being is the same reason you're still here," Megatron continued, snapping the Maximal leader's attention back to him. "Your new forms may have saved you from my virus, but they _won't_ save you from my Eradicons."

A new screen appeared and showed the troopers. "A wave of the future. Transformers without sparks. No more individual minds. Just one single intelligence guiding them...mine."

* * *

><p>They climbed up the wall as fast as they could. Jack pulled up the visor and looked down before shouting at Cheetor, "They're too fast of climbers. We're never going to get up there in time!"<p>

Cheetor looked up before saying, "You're with me. We'll disperse enough fire if we split."

Jack looked back down. "I hope you're right."

They jumped back down. One of the troopers motioned some to follow.

* * *

><p>"I control all of Cybertron!"<p>

Optimus felt the floor beneath him separated. He fell to the ground beneath, yelling before he slammed into a tile. He felt himself being lifted up and faced Megatron once more.

"I am the future," his nemesis gloated, as a painting was lit up. "I have forged this entire planet into a single elegant machine. A vision of technological purity and order. And you four mongrels, along with your strange new ally, would dare contaminate that vision with your accursed beast modes."

"No offense to rain on your parade, Megatron" Optimus pinpointed, "but if memory serves me correctly you have a beast mode yourself."

"And wiped it clean from my shell," Megatron boasted, "_like_ a virus. The same way I wiped this planet clean. The same way I intend to finish the job with you!"

He turned and shot a red light at the Maximal, causing him to fly backwards.

* * *

><p>One trooper barely made it to the edge as Jack and Cheetor ran past him. He onlined his blaster and aimed. Jack stopped and pointed his own rifle and fired, leaving a burn mark. He growled and took off, but something wrapped around his ankles and he fell over. He looked up to find the trooper standing over him, his firearm aimed. Jack didn't have time to react before he heard multiple slicing sounds. He watched as the trooper crumbled down in myriad pieces.<p>

"Oh..."

He suddenly felt his ankles freed. He grunted and sat up. He looked behind him to find Cheetor standing over him.

"Huh. Not bad for a rookie," Cheetor stated as he held out a hand.

"Thanks," Jack grumbled, "for not leaving me behind to die."

He took his hand. Cheetor gave an assuring nod and smile before pulling his partner up.

* * *

><p>Megatron growled as he watched the Maximals beat down his troopers.<p>

"What's the matter, Megatron?" Optimus called out. "Having trouble multitasking?"

Crying out in frustration, Megatron picked up one of the screens and threw it into the darkness.

* * *

><p>Blackarachnia's luck was going well for her. Reaching the top of the building she knew she only had a few seconds to think up a plan.<p>

From the drone's point of view, we see nobody on the roof; but before it can react, Blackarachnia popped up from under the railing and kicked it square in the face, causing it to fall to its destruction.

* * *

><p>"It's frustrating, isn't it?" Optimus questioned as he slowly got up from where he was and walked slowly towards Megatron. "Trying to focus on destroying four chaotic individual minds."<p>

"Silence!" Megatron shouted.

"You're still ruled by anger," Optimus continued, almost smiling as he watched Megatron's temper rise. "That's not so pure of you, now is it? You can feel the anger rising within you. The tension is building up. And just when you're this close to being calm, you just explode!"

Megatron lung at him, but he could feel the wires unplugging from his helmet. Pain ripped through his entire body as he felt himself falling to the ground and transforming into his beast mode. His golden eyes showed horror and anger.

"No!"

* * *

><p>The sudden echo of the voice stopped every Maximal in their tracks.<p>

"What was that?" Jack asked.

"Eh, must've been my animal magnetism," Rattrap said.

"Is that suppose to be a joke?" Blackarachnia questioned.

"We gotta help Optimus!" Cheetor exclaimed. "He's still in the Citadel."

* * *

><p>Megatron sprang forward and tried to tackle Optimus, now in robot form, but the Maximal leader grabbed him and beheld him to one of the screens.<p>

"Look at yourself, Megatron. See the very thing you despise the most. Cybertron will never be pure so long as the beast exists within you. You've failed," Optimus gloated.

"No, Primal," Megatron spoke. "_**You**_ have failed." He blasted fire at the screen and they flew into different directions. Optimus cried out as he slammed into a wall. Megatron stood on his hind legs and turned to Optimus, who was trying to stand up.

"You're still too late to save your people," Megatron said. "Thousands of transformers, their extinguished sparks are on _your_ hands."

"What have you done to them?" Optimus demanded.

"Perhaps if you won the Beast Wars, things would have been different, who's to say," Megatron taunted as he transformed back to his robot mode and regained control.

Optimus clenched and unclenched his fist, a growl resonating through his throat. He yelled in fury and rushed towards the Vehicon, only to miss and land face first on the floor.

"Who's the beast now?"

Megatron raised his hand and opened the door to the control room, revealing more troopers. But before they could react, Cheetor, Jack, and Blackarachnia appeared behind them and used their respective abilities to destroy several of the drones. Megatron had enough and decided to take matters into his own hands before he parted the pathway under Optimus' feet. He fell in to the seemingly endless darkness.

"Optimus!" Jack shouted.

Megatron laughed triumphantly and summoned Hardshell to finish off the rest of the Maximals. Just when it seemed they were finished, they saw Optimus alive and using his jet pack to fly out of the pit. Hardshell gave out a savage roar and charged.

"Let's bust this joint while we can," Jack shouted.

"Optimus, we have to leave now" Cheetor said. "We're outnumbered."

"NO! This is my fight," Optimus said as he braced himself for the coming attack.

Jack saw that Optimus wasn't going to be convinced. He knocked his leader unconscious with the butt of his rifle.

"Sorry, Optimus," he whispered, "but I'm not going to let you die."

Something suddenly wrapped around his ankle and yanked him down and dragged him to the shadows. He yelled for help and clawed at the floor. Cheetor grabbed his sword and slashed at the tendril, watching it disappear.

"Thank you," Jack exhaled before scurrying to his feet.

As Cheetor and Blackarachnia used their combined strength to drag Optimus away, Rattrap jumped from out from the shadows where he was hiding and used his hands to get a vent opening.

"Alright, Optimus. You've saved my tail enough times today, now it's my turn to save yours," Rattrap spoke under his breath as he managed to remove the door to the vent as Hardshell drew closer.

"Let's get going while the goings good!" Jack yelled to his friends as he jumped into the vent.

As the rest of the Maximals reached the vent, Optimus still put up a little resistance before falling into the vent and cursed Megatron's name. As he heard his foe's words reverberate through the citadel, Megatron had a victorious scowl on his face, seeing his enemy's flee in defeat. Starscream, Soundwave, and Knocko Out stepped out of the shadows.

"What a magnificent way to manipulate his emotions towards us," Starscream praised. "It isn't every day you see a Maximal boil with rage, putting up a good fight."

"Yes, but you don't see Cybertronians look exactly like that black one," Knock Out pointed out.

"Hmm, true," Starscream agreed. "Where did he come from?"

"Soundwave: Suggestion: Not from Cybertron," Soundwave said.

"Yeah, like as if," Starscream scoffed.

"So, Starscream, I've escaped from my imprisonment, find the planet fully dysfunctional, and I come back to find Maximals RUNNING AROUND?!" Megatron shouted, forcing the seeker to jump back. "And not to mention that I happen to be one soldier missing. Why has this happened?"

Starscream quickly thought of an excuse before he pointed and shouted, "It was Knock Out's fault!"

"Precisely why – WHAT?!" Knock Out yelped.

"We deliberately told him to rid the Maximal at ease, but no," Starscream said. "No one ever listens to me."

"Ha ha. Ha ha," laughed Soundwave monotonously as Hardshell burst out laughing.

"What?" Starscream demanded.

"That is the worst excuse I have ever heard from you," Megatron snarled. "Even Hardshell could come up with something better."

"Ha ha – Wait, what?" Hardshell asked.

"So, do you want us to terminate them, like, now?" Knock Out suggested.

Megatron hesitated. "No."

"What?" Starscream asked, surprise.

"I want you to find out how they became like that," Megatron commanded. "And I want you to know of the stranger's origins right now. Is that understood?"

His soldiers confirmed to agreement and set off to work.

* * *

><p>After avoiding the patrols of the Eradicons, the Maximals had finally reached the catacombs of Cybertron. After catching their breath, Cheetor asked the question that was on all of their minds:<p>

"I don't understand, Optimus. I thought we defeated Megatron. How is he in control of Cybertron?"

A saddened look came over Optimus' face. "I failed; I could have prevented this nightmare," he said.

A hand gently grasped Optimus' shoulder. He looked up to find Jack smiling at him.

"Don't worry, Primal," he said. "We're right here for you, and we'll never leave your side until the end."

Optimus looked at his faithful friends and then back at Jack. "You're right. Thanks to whatever accident happened, we now represent the new age for Cybertron. We are no longer simple machines or mindless animals. We are now the perfect unity of the two. We are no longer transmetals, Fuzors, or Optimals; we are now from this moment on...BEAST MACHINES!"

****Hoped you liked it. Until next time.****


	4. 03 Predacons Rising

****I am so sorry that this chapter took so long. I couldn't figure out what this one was going to be about and I was planning for this to happen way later on, but after the third chapter I totally got stuck as to put this one down. Rest assured, I am going to promise that you won't be disappointed about this story. The SoaL is rushed in some chapters and my other stories are in a slow process. I am still faithful to this, no matter what happens. So for now, please enjoy.****

****03 Predacons Rising****

_Jack looks back to the events that caused him to come to Cybertron, while he and Rattrap battle out three new players of the war._

Jack had never forgotten his promise. When Ron died of a heart attack, he carried the spark around with him at all times. But ever since he was given it, the spark seemed to be like it was speaking to him as it caused unexplainable things to happen, just to get on his nerves. He knew it didn't mean for them to happen, but they always did. Those things were usually unnatural surprises that life always threw at him. Though, most of the time things just happened on their own. Being sent to another planet by some god was one of them.

Jack had grown briefly to be 'the boy.' The one no one talked to, the one the jocks picked on, the one who ate by himself, the one nobody remembered, the one deemed the outcast. Now he had grown up to be the boy some people never forgot; a handsome boy to his discouragement. Ugh, those days when he felt more comfortable alone.

He was up in his quarters, fixing up something, while the others were trying to retrieve important archives from some place he had never heard of before. He reached for a screw driver and tightened up the screw. He stopped and looked at the glass canister, with the spark pulsing inside of it. He smiled as he gently rubbed a knuckle on it.

"We're going to be okay," he spoke softly to the spark. "I know you can take care of yourself, but not now." He suddenly looked at the suit he had locked behind the glass vault his had built. "At least until I know how to get that thing to...stop getting me to trigger the memories behind it."

_Jasper, Nevada. It wasn't exactly the capital of entertainment. It was a small town that established years ago. It was mainly a town for those who wanted a simple life and for those who wanted to start a fresh life while they attended college in the bigger cities nearby, or simply started a business of their own._

_That all changed when the War on NBEs started. Now it simply was for the military and their families to settle down in. Kind of like in _Pacific Rim.

_Jack was checking out of the hotel when his cell phone rang. He checked the number and frowned. _Weird,_ he thought. He shrugged and answered it. "Hello?"_

_"Jackie!" the voice on the other end cheered. "Man, am I glad to hear from ya! Everyone thought you wouldn't come!"_

_"Vince. It's been too long," Jack joked._

"_Seriously, though," Vince said._

"_And miss this for the world?" Jack scoffed. "Never gonna happen. Especially after that stunt I heard you pulled last week." Then something occurred to him as Vince laughed. "Though I'm not sure how that would imply to rule number one: Keep a low profile."_

"_What can I say?" Vince snorted. "Waiting for one of those demons to attack us again turns this town into Dullsville. Almost makes me want to come smacking down towards that jerk that pulled us all together again."_

"_Grow a spine, Vinny," Jack laughed. "I got a date with a girl later." He just walked out onto the street and hung up when a jeep pulled up beside him. He looked at the window as it rolled down to reveal a scar faced, dark eyed man with a smug grin. "Have a minute alone?"_

* * *

><p><em>Jack entered the office nervously. "Something wrong, Colonel Bishop?" he asked.<em>

_"No, Private. It's not what you did. It's what you're about to do," Bishop said with a smile. "We have a special project we're working on. We'd like you to take part in it."_

_"Sir?"_

_"Think about it." He pressed a button on a remote and the wall on Jack's right opened up. He stood there in awe at the black suit. The helmet was similar to a motorcyclist's. The shoulder pads were flat and thin, the chest plate was flat with a small sphere in the center. Plates were layered on the upper arms and lower legs. The armor on the lower arms were smooth with gauntlets that looked like grapples, with guards on the upper legs. To Jack, it looked like a crossover between the Ironman suit and the pilot suits from the photos he had seen._

_"It's new gear," Bishop continued. "My team managed to build it, but I need a volunteer. It might save many people. Even more than half the people we have sent to the Pacific."_

_"Sir, I'm sure there are more qualified men than me for this kind of assignment."_

_"Perhaps. But I am offering this to you because your father and I were friends. Think of it as a chance to honor his memory."_

_Jack stood there for a while. He was uncertain of what to do at first. Then again, this could prove to be a great opportunity for him. He was not able to take part in the war because of his ranking, but this was his chance to ensure no one else suffered._

_"Just fill me on the details, sir!" he responded._

_Bishop smirked. It was a kind of smirk that sent chills down one's spine._

He shook his head, then turned back to the spark with a smile. "But someday, I'll be able to get you back walking on feet. Only when you're not as stubborn as you think you are."

The same chuckle he heard years ago echoed in his mind, forcing him to roll his eyes. "Very funny."

He heard a noise from outside. Jack perked up before he smiled and ran out to the command center. He felt just like a kid waiting to show his parents what he made in art class. However, as he stepped over the threshold and saw the Maximals in beast mode, his smiled disappeared. Here's why.

"We were sloppy out there!" Optimus berated. "Unfocused, reckless, insubordinate. One more mission like that and we might as well be surrendering to Megatron!"

"Geesh, and bye-bye zen master," Rattrap grumbled.

"Rattrap," Cheetor said as he glared at him. "You almost got killed out there."

"Uh, we almost got killed out der," Rattrap corrected him.

"The exact point," Blackarachnia said.

"You think this is a joke?!" Optimus shouted, causing him to make a weird cat-like sound. "We are Cybertron's last hope!"

Jack's eyes darted among them before he backed up into the hallway. Maybe now wasn't a good time.

* * *

><p>Jack strolled down the road with his hands in his pocket. The young private just wanted to be alone. That's why he came up here. Cybertron was still dark and the sun was surely to rise anytime soon.<p>

"_Warning: Energy levels at ten percent. Must reboot or all systems will be shut down,"_ a voice from inside his helmet announced.

Jack sighed and rummaged through the small pouch he carried before he pulled out a small vial. The image that he beheld sent him back to the past.

_"Congratulations, Private. You performed well. And the gear...marvelous," Leland said, approaching the black suit. "The Regeneration Combat Suit performed very well."_

_"I don't think the military will consider it though," Jack said as he dried his face from all the sweat he had. "The suit is only activated by adrenaline."_

_"We're still on our way there, Private. And before you know it..." Leland paused and smiled. "Our soldiers will be able to handle anything."_

"_I hope so," was all Jack had to say._

Jack shook his head, wiping the memory away. He took the vial out and put the new one inside. He watched as the runes in his armor glowed a bright blue before they faded. He closed the compartment and smiled. Everything seemed to be in order now.

He stopped in front of a wall. Jack gazed up and followed it to the top. He grabbed the ladder and began to climb up it. Once he got to the ledge, he took a brief look around before he climbed over it and continued on. His eyes scanned for the Vehicons as he ran for the nearest ship. He ducked down and peered across the clearing.

"That's strange," Jack wondered. "Why is only one ship opened?"

He heard a clanking sound from behind. He whipped his head around and looked down...

"Hello, Jackie," Rattrap's rat form greeted.

Jack shrieked and used the lid to slam him down. The young private covered his mouth when he realized who he slammed the lid against. Thankfully, he didn't kill the rat as Rattrap's head popped out from under it.

"Anybody get the number of the low lifter that ran me over?" Rattrap groaned.

"Rattrap, I am so, so sorry," Jack frantically apologized. "I didn't know who you were or what you were, but I barely recognized you with–" He stopped in realization. "Wait a minute. How did you know I would be here?"

"Eh, next time, try the sewers," Rattrap suggested after his recovery. "It ain't exactly easy on the nose, but he he he, it's a heck of a lot faster."

Jack rolled his eyes and headed towards the ship.

"So," Rattrap started as he followed him, "what brings you to the Central Spaceport? Hm, hm? Headin' right off to th', say, second planet?"

Jack glared at him. "Back off."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rat you out to the big cheese," Rattrap questioned.

Jack gritted his teeth and leaned in towards him. "I'll give you something to cheese about you little–"

"Hiya!"

Rattrap and Jack turned around to find another Cybertronian, only he wasn't a techno-organic like the others. He was mostly red except for his face and hands. An insect's head laid on his chest with the abdomen split in four as they rotated. He carried a rifle in his left arm.

"For the royalty!" the insect-bot declared triumphantly before he began to shoot at them.

Jack and Rattrap screamed and started running as fast as they could. The raven-haired human had never been this freaked out before.

"I thought Lennox said they were out of business," Jack snarled.

"What are ya talkin' about?" Rattrap shrieked.

"Keep running!" Jack ordered.

"Three cheers if you support the royalty!" the Predacon, also known as Inferno, shouted as he continued to chase them.

Jack ducked behind a nearby building, grabbing Rattrap in the process as Inferno rushed by.

"I think we lost him," Jack sighed.

"Bzzz."

Both of them stiffened as they slowly looked up. They yelped in surprise.

"Waspinator, terrorize!" the green and yellow wasp exclaimed before transforming into a bug-like transformer.

Jack and Rattrap screamed before they made a mad dash out of the building.

"Anyone else I should know about?" Rattrap shouted.

"Anyone else you know?" Jack questioned.

"I don't know," Rattrap shrieked.

"Ye-haw!" a southern drawl cried out.

"That's Quickstrike!" Rattrap screamed as they ran for their lives.

"I hate my life!" Jack shouted.

"I know!" Rattrap agreed.

An explosion rocked the shipyard, sending them flying through the air. As Jack landed on his back, his mind went back.

_A few hours passed before the soldiers got the cargo to the base. The reason was they needed to make sure it was safe. And, despite their size and strength, they still needed some heavy lifting._

_The soldier were beyond grateful to General Bryse when they heard they could keep whatever was inside. As it turned out, it was the legendary computer Teletraan I. Cade Yeager, of all people, was joyful. With this their work would now be far easier. Still, the attack on Quebec bothered him, though he wouldn't really show to bother with it._

"_Jack! Jack!"_

_The young soldier smiled as he watched a familiar ginger run up and threw her arms around him. He returned the favor before giving her a kiss on the forehead. "I missed you," he said._

"_I missed you too," the girl whispered, gazing up at him with her green eyes._

"_How's my mom hanging?" Jack asked._

"_Lately, she's been acting like a chicken running around with its head cut off," the ginger told him as they walked outside._

"_Yep, that's my mom," Jack mumbled._

_"So who do you suspect?" the girl suddenly asked._

_"Excuse me?" Jack asked._

_"I can already tell," she said, softly enough only for him to hear. "The attack was no accident. You suspect or already know there's a traitor in your ranks."_

_The raven-haired man didn't answer at first. He looked around, to see nobody took notice of them. Then he looked back at his girlfriend. "The only question, Sierra, is who."_

_"Hey, Lennox! We had four cubes onboard, didn't we?" Cade asked, lifting a metallic cube in his hand._

_"Yeah, why?" Will explained._

_"The thing is...there's only three left," Cade answered. "And one of them is badly damaged."_

_"What? Just when I thought things have gotten better," Robert Epps sighed, analyzing the cubes._

_Cade frowned. "This one is damaged as well. I won't risk repairing it or I'll completely destroy it. But it can still be used once or twice."_

_"So, what happened to the fourth one?" Jack wondered_**_._**

_Once they left, Jack looked over to the doorway. To his surprise, he found Leland "Silas" Bishop there, looking with disaproval. It was a mixture of worry and...anger?_

_The young man waited until they were all gone. Then, as he left, he realized that he forgot his pack. He turned around and went to the hanger. As he bent down to get it, he heard footsteps, followed by a familiar voice._

"_I do not care of this. I won't have the hindrance. He is a threat, and he must be eliminated."_

_Jack craned his hearing more. That was clearly Silas' voice._

"_But sir, should they suspect–"_

"_I'll take care of that. Until then, deal with Private Darby."_

_Jack stiffened._

"_What do you suspect?"_

"_There is a camp of those NBEs outside near the Rockies. Send him there with Lennox and any others you find a threat."_

"_B-but they won't be able to handle them..."_

"_This isn't about them dealing with aliens, Major. It's about making sure he doesn't find out about our little project."_

_Jack peeked up to find them entering another room before he went to warn Will._

Jack tumbled and felt his body slam into a nearby wall. Pain course through his body as he fell limp. As he tried to open his eyes, his vision was blurry at first. He had to blink the dots away before his vision cleared and, to his horror, found a gold and blue Cybertronian pick up an unconscious Rattrap.

"No!" Jack shouted as he rushed forward and snatched Rattrap before slapping the Predacon in the face and running out of sight.

It took Quickstrike a while to regain focus before Inferno and Waspinator approached him.

"Quickstrike, where are the Maximals?" Inferno questioned.

"Uh, ah dunno," Quickstrike's southern drawl answered, still dazed by the slap.

"Bzzz, Wazzpinator will find the Maximals," Waspinator said. "Then ant-bot and fuzor and Wazzpinator will...what will we do again?"

His companions groaned and face palmed themselves.

* * *

><p>They were hiding in a drain, glad to have a second to rest. This had turned out to be far more difficult than what they had expected. The entrance was hard to deal with, since the only sure way in was through the pipes. The gaps were small, yet they managed.<p>

"We're so lost," Rattrap mumbled. "Do ya even know where we're goin'?"

Jack looked out. "I'm not sure. I'm just playing it by ear."

Rattrap groaned.

"He made this sound so much easy, but he couldn't tell me if they'd be here looking for it," Jack said, only to regret it.

"What?" Rattrap yelped. "What thing?"

Jack sighed as he pulled out the spark out of his pack. "This."

Rattrap optics widen at the spark. "Where in da name of Primus did ya get that?"

"Passed down in my family since the late seventeenth century. Though, I'm not sure how we got it." He looked down the tunnel of the drain. "We gotta keep moving. I don't want to end up Decepticon chow."

"Do ya even know 'em?" Rattrap asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Ya've been actin' weird about 'em."

Jack pursed his lips to the side and sighed. "Yeah, they were the reason how I got here."

"Huh?"

"Back then..." Jack stopped and sighed, knowing there was no point backing out. "At the time, we were fighting an alienating war. The day I was accidentally taken here was the day we found a traitor in our ranks, while he brought two of them back from the dead."

_It sounded like a suicidal mission, but Jack was sure of it. Will looked up at Robert, who was surveying the approaching vehicles. "How many are there?" he asked._

"_Enough to take down," Robert answered with a grin._

"_Let's hope you're right," Will said, though even Jack knew he was directing the statement to Sierra._

"_Are you saying that you don't trust me?" Sierra demanded._

"_I'm saying that...Never mind," Will groaned. "Darby, Yeager, Epps and I will take the back entry. Figueroa, I want you to take A Team and storm the main entryway. Make sure no one Will the premises. Simmons, can you keep an eye on–"_

"_I don't take orders from a hit man," Seymour said._

_Will narrowed his eyes. "I'm not giving you a direct order. I'm asking you to do me a favor."_

"_Guys, now's not the time," Jack hissed. "We've gotta bring them down, and fast."_

_With a grin, Cade loaded his gun. "Right. Let's do this."_

_Clutching his firearm, Jack followed with his team to the back entrance. He looked back to find Sierra taking cover behind a tank. He hoped that she would be safe._

"_When do we attack?" Cade asked._

"_When we hear the signal," Will answered._

_A very bright light came from inside the building. All four men had to cover their eyes to shield themselves from being blinded. They dared to take a peek inside to see the results._

_They never got to the signal when a sharp sound cut through the atmosphere outside._

"_What was that?" Robert asked._

_Something exploded, causing them to go flying. Jack tumbled and watched the others land nearby._

"_Guys!"_

_Something red and black shot through the rooftop and let out a battle cry. Jack stared at it in awe. Where did it come from?_

"_Commence an attack for the royaylty!" it shouted. It started to shoot at them._

"_Open fire!"_

_Jack covered his head and made a run for the entrance. He noticed in a corner a creepy looking scorpion jumping out of nowhere and tackling one of his comrades. He hit it with the butt of his weapon before letting his ally run into the fight._

_From another part of the compound, Silas watched as the fighting presumed. Finding the being who claimed himself to being Waspinator and finding the body parts of his dead companions was not what he had imagined to happen when he was in Africa. But, with the knowledge provided, they were able to get them back online._

_And now, because of the Darby brat, things were out of hand._

_"It's over, Bishop," a voice came from behind. Silas turned to find Will pointing a gun at him. "You're under arrest."_

_"Afraid not, Lennox," Silas answered calmly. "You see, I still have a fight to see to its end."_

_"And what's to stop me?" Will asked._

_"Me." Silas quickly kicked the warrior's gun out of his hand and punched him._

_Jack, who had managed to reach their positions, closed his eyes before he yelled and tackled his former commander to the floor. They wrestled and punched each other, give an occasional kick and a bite. Jack winced when he did that, causing Silas to yelp._

"_I am not sorry," Jack growled as he got up, standing over his former commander._

_Silas coughed as he tried to regain his breathing. He looked up just to see Jack run up and type in the command codes._

"_Thank you for your cooperation last week," Jack snarled._

_Silas' eyes widen. He watched as Jack slammed his hand on the button and power up one of the machine._

_"Yes!" Robert exclaimed as he pumped his fist._

_Then a white light beamed onto Jack._

__"Uh-oh," he gulped.__

_"_What's happening?" Will asked.__

_At last__,_ _a low male voice spoke._ _A receptive heart._

_"Jack!" Sierra screamed as they began to shield their sights from the light that was growing. She was sent flying backwards and to the other side. When she sat up, the portal was gone. "Jack!"_

_She felt two arms help lift her up and drag her out of the crossfire. "I couldn't save him. I couldn't save him!"_

_Jack opened his eyes and found himself floating in a void. "Where am I?"_

_You are now interfacing with the Matrix._

_Jack jerked and looked around, only not finding the source of the voice._

_The Allspark that links with everyone and everything that ever lived. Or ever will live._

_"What are you?" Jack shouted._

_I am the strength of the weak, the light in the darkness, the savior against evil, the courage of the cowardly. I am the vision of those who cannot see, the healer of the broken, the cure of the sickness._

_Jack didn't know how to answer this, but the person sounded like some god of a myth. "Okay. And what do you want of me?"_

_The next thing he knew was a planet and a sun appearing before him. Jack stared at the unknown sphere, admiring its beauty. But he yelped as a great light emanated is surface and covering it._

_You admire its presence, but cower at its destruction. I quite admire that, Jackson William Darby._

_"How do you know my name?" Jack asked. "And who are you?"_

_I am called by many names. But you may refer to me as the Primus. I am assisting you both the help needed._

_"Both of us?"_

_Allow me to explain. I used the power of the psyche to pull you away from your friends and brought you here for a favor._

_"What kind of favor?" Jack asked._

_A small bright light glowed and descended from the void before it stopped in front of him._ _This,_ _Primus gestured,_ _is the greatest gift I give you: the Soul Dew. I want you to be its keeper._

_Through the light, Jack could see a blue sphere with green markings almost materializing and shrinking to the size of a baseball. He raised his hands cautiously to feel such warmth emitting from the relic._

_Pulsing next to it in a container was the spark._

_"Why are you giving me these? Shouldn't you give them to someone worthier?"_

_In the event of capture, would you want him or her to go through a torturous removal at the hands of the enemy if they were to find out that my only possession rests in Cybertron's only hope's hands?_

_"No," Jack said, holding the sphere and the spark protectively. "I'll gladly be the one to go through such treatment if it means to protect my friends."_

_If Primus was a living being, he would know that it saw the determination and courage in his eyes. He could feel him smile at his bravery._ _To answer your other question, I am giving you this because I believe you are destined for greatness. What I am about to ask is this: Will you protect your friends and any survivors of a virus on Cybertron at all cost from the evil forces of the enemy, even if it means you might die in the process?_

_"Yes," Jack spoke without hesitating. "I will do anything for everyone, even if it means sacrificing my life for them."_

_Primus vcouldn't help but smile at his character, just like a Maximal/Autobot warrior. __Very well then._

_Soon, the sphere suddenly stopped glowing and Jack put it in his jacket's pocket._

_It is done,_ _Primus announced._ _And now for your relocation._

_"Wait, what?" Jack started to ask._

_The greatest war that has ever been fought awaits, Jackson Darby. Prepare to be tested. And remember this,_ he added, _the future to one's greatness lies buried within the past. Four survivors will be the ones you must seek. Then you will accompany them with others to revive their friends from the enemy's grasp and lead them to restore their home planet to its former glory. Then, when the time comes, I want you to show them the path I will show you in the future. Do you think you can do that for me?_

_"Yes, I...I understand."_

_Good. It's time for you to reality._

_"Alright then. It was nice meeting you."_

_One more thing,_ _Primus added._ _To unleash the true warrior within, you must tame the beast without. Seek the balance. Transform your destiny. Transform and transcend._

_Jack realized something. "Wait! I have a question. Who are these people that survived?"_

_But a white light suddenly engulfed the void and Jack was blinded. When the light died and he uncovered his eyes, he found himself awake._

Jack sat against the wall, finally over with the history lesson. He could feel Rattrap being quiet and uncomfortable about it. He couldn't blame him. It was a lot to go through, being betrayed by one of his commanding officers and then finding himself on another world.

"Let's head on back," Jack sighed at last. "The others are going to wonder where the heck we've been."

"Eh, beats this anyways," Rattrap said.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked.

"How does dis sound amusing?" Rattrap questioned before saying in a girly voice, "And what did you do in the war, Daddy?" He quickly answered to himself in his normal voice, "Well, honey, I made gardening equipment ta help de troops plant petunias!" He instantly replied to that with, "Really, Daddy?!"

"You've been working on that for quite a while, haven't you?" Jack asked, amused.

"Admit it, ya love my company," Rattrap said.

****Cast****

****Primus – Morgan Freeman (Come on, he's perfect!)****

****Inferno – Jim Byrnes****

****Waspinator – Scott McNiel****

****Quickstrike – Colin Murdock****

****CyLAS/Leland Bishop – Clancy Brown****

****Will Lennox – Michael Dobson****

****Robert Epps – John DiMaggio****

****Cade Yeager – Khary Payton****

****Jorge Figueroa – Garry Chalk****

****Seymour Simmons – Steve Blum****


End file.
